I am going to do something unexpected, unusual, uncharacteristic and even, dare I say it, unbecoming now.
I am going to do something sincere. I am going to say 'thank you'.
The first set of people I am going to say 'thank you' to are the regular readers and commenters on this blog, some of whom - these people, let me be clear, must be stark raving mad - have been consistently doing it literally for years, in some cases a decade or more. Others have come and gone; some have frenziedly commented on every post for a period of time and then disappeared; some pop up from time to time between gaps of many months; some appear with mysterious aliases that may or not shift from appearance to appearance; some are forever 'Anon'.
The surprising thing about these people is that 99% of the time they are respectful, intelligent, creative, polite, and interesting. There is the occasional heaping of abuse, the occasional yelled slur from the sidelines, the occasional cowardly anonymous criticism. But those episodes are gratifyingly rare. I can honestly say that the people who comment here are a cut above: they contribute. You guys have made writing this blog a consistently rewarding experience over the years, and the periods of time when I have enjoyed writing it the most - the periods of time when I have really felt the process seem to sing - have been when a proper feedback mechanism develops and I am able to post in response to and in light of the creative comments that readers have offered.
So - sincerely. Thanks.
But there is a second set of people I would like to say 'thank you' to - a more diffuse category, most of whom will not even be aware this blog exists, and some of whom are dead. These are the people who, down the years, have created the games, the settings, the books, the concepts that have enriched my life by making it possible to write this blog, and to provide me with the creative outlet it - and the spin-out products I've made - has been. Without this hobby my life would have lacked something important: the opportunity occasionally to escape the prison of the mundane, and to run scampering out across the meadows of the imagination. Those opportunities have become rarer as the prison guards have become more insistent, thorough and hard-working. But they still exist, here and there - with a little help from these friends I've mentioned.
So thank you to them, too.
I have nothing else to add. I wanted to write something positive.
I've been reading your blog via RSS for less than a year, but I consistently find it entertaining and insightful. So thanks to you for continuing to provide inspiration to my own campaign and games!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteI probably follow yours and half dozen or so gaming blogs on the regular for the last five years, but yours is really the only one I comment on, because this is the only one I think I have anything to contribute to because it gives me ideas! Some of them bad! But I don't worry because you're a good teacher, and even my bad ideas will be mined for value and refocus not reticule because you recognize I'm here to have fun, however, you can still shut down the disruptive bomb thrower without being a bully. This blog, and yoon-suin, has given ideas that have run three years of dnd with my kids now 10 and 9 (with some practical content editing) and they love it. So, man, thank you. This is a great spot to get inspired, on a bad day get distracted, have a laugh, learn and have fun. If I ever have a legit complaint I'll shoot you an email not a comment, because that's what real men do, and if I can ever get back to the U.K. I'll find you and by ya a pint.
ReplyDeleteOh, thanks! That's a great comment. Cheers - and it's lovely to contribute to family D&D.
DeleteI read very few RPG blogs these days, but this one is pretty much consistently worth reading. In a spirit of mutual back-slapping I'd like to thank you for keeping it up – I'm well aware of just how time-consuming it is to write this kind of stuff, and the fact that you have done it consistently for so many years alongside raiding young family, holding down what must be a pretty demanding job (which also must involve plenty of writing) and even, you know, occasionally shipping Kickstarters 🙃 (sorry, that's a bit unkind – I know how hard that is too, and even if all you were doing was putting out your RPG books & zines, that's still quite the accomplishment)... well, to be absolutely honest, your creative fecundity is an inspiration.
ReplyDeleteApologies if my comments frequently stray far from the subject at hand: my favourite topic has always been "off-topic". I do appreciate that the conversation here is, by-and-large, intelligent and tolerant. (Well, OK, perhaps "tolerant" is going a bit too far 😁)
Thanks Dan! Not sure how 'fecund' it is these days. Although the good thing is the Yoon-Suin 2nd ed KS really is getting very close to shipping. Finally got all the ducks in the row.
DeleteYeah, I'm aware that side of things has been a struggle lately, but I also appreciate the balancing act between the many sides of your life which I'm sure is responsible. The pendulum will swing again. And, one day... Gently Smiling Jaws 😁
DeleteThanks for writing your blog. It's always a thought-provoking read. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteThank you, for writing this blog. I seldom comment, but frequently enjoy and ponder upon what I read here. - scampering out across the meadows of the imagination - what a beautiful expression!
ReplyDeleteThanks very much. Haha, yes, the meadows of the imagination... after 17 years I've learned to turn the odd phrase... ;)
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